Ugly Doesn't Describe It

Notre Dame has succeeded in avoiding what the NCAA Tournament Committee deems as a "bad loss" so far this season, especially in conference play. The Irish have beaten the teams they are supposed to beat, while fellow Big East peers like Pittsburgh, Georgetown, and Marquette have fallen to weaker competition.

But the upset bullet nearly pierced Notre Dame Sunday in New Jersey.

In a downright ugly game, the Irish squeaked by lowly Rutgers 71-68 behind a near triple double from Tory Jackson and a crucial 17-foot jumper from Rob Kurz down the stretch. Notre Dame overcame poor second half shooting, a mostly ineffective Luke Harangody and a raucous RACC crowd.

With the victory Notre Dame improved to an all time best 9-3 in conference play, and sit just half a game out of first place.

Notre Dame faces two tough home games against Pittsburgh and Syracuse in the coming week before heading to Kentucky for a very difficult game against Louisville.

To win those contests, Notre Dame needs to improve in the one area where it has seriously struggled this season. The last several games have exposed this team's biggest weakness -- 3-point defense.

In losses against Marquette (12-of-24 3-pointers made), Georgetown (8-of-20) and Connecticut (8-of-20), and Sunday's close win over Rutgers (9-of-25), Notre Dame struggled to contain its opponents' 3-point shooting.

The Irish have certainly improved their overall defense. But Notre Dame is still vulnerable to teams that shoot well from the outside. The Irish are ranked 23rd in the nation in 2-point field goal defense, but just 167th in 3-point field goal defense. This means Notre Dame has been clamping down in the paint, but hasn't challenged opponents' shooters on the perimeter.

The bigger problem could occur in the NCAA Tournament if the Irish draw either a sharpshooting early round opponent or simply face a team that hits a flurry of 3s, like Winthrop did a year ago. If there's one area in which I'd like to see major improvement during the final month of the season, it's perimeter defense.

Aside from letting Rutgers shoot too many open 3s, Sunday's game did give the Irish confidence in winning a game where neither Kyle McAlarney or Harangody play well. The team received an outstanding game from Jackson, who continues to improve on the offensive end. Kurz snapped out of his mini-slump with some clutch shots, including a baseline jumper as the shot clock ran down late in the second half. That bucket might be the most important Kurz has made this season.

The Irish command a full two game lead in the loss column on the fourth Big East bye. The next three games will likely determine the probably seeding Notre Dame receives in the NCAA Tournament. If the Irish take two of three, they are staring at three sub-.500 opponents to end the regular season and should finish 14-4 in the conference. That will be good enough for a first round bye in the conference tourney and the chance to secure a No. 3 or No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The next test is Thursday at the JACC when Pittsburgh limps into town following a thrashing on the road to Marquette on Friday. The Panthers desperately need a conference victory and would like nothing more than snapping Notre Dame's 34-game home winning streak.